Which fast bowlers will Aussie selectors leave out for Ashes opener?

The overnight action at The Oval has arguably left more questions than answers about the ideal makeup of the Australian attack for the upcoming Ashes, writes DANIEL CHERNY.

Like a Melbourne Cup fancy doing track work, Josh Hazlewood galloped back and forth from one side of The Oval to the other.

It was lunch on day two of the World Test Championship final, and Hazlewood was being put through his paces alongside the supremely fit Australian assistant coach Andre Borovec, who looks as though he hasn’t skipped chest day since some point in the mid-1980s.

Lithe and upright, Hazlewood gave no discernible sign that he would be anything but ready to confront England at Edgbaston next week.

After all, Australian selection chair George Bailey had stressed that Hazlewood was awfully close to being declared right for the WTC final.

Ultimately he was withdrawn from the squad three days out from the game, but the sense from the Australian camp was that the side soreness Hazlewood had brought home from the Indian Premier League was minor, and that the decision not to pick him was made out of an abundance of caution.

Australia are playing it cautious with veteran Josh Hazlewood. Picture: AFP

Pulling Hazlewood from the WTC final squad made the selectors’ job easier. Despite the social media push for Michael Neser to play, he was never going to dislodge any of Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc or Scott Boland.

It was a case of history repeating, with Hazlewood’s call to opt out of last year’s Boxing Day Test ensuring the panel didn’t have to make the agonising decision about which man to leave out. Boland was rested for the ensuing SCG dead rubber, allowing Hazlewood a path back as Australia proceeded with two spinners in what would prove to be another rain-marred clash.

In that case, the stakes were relatively low. But with the Aussies about to go up against Bazball-era England in an away Ashes series, the panel needs to make shrewd calls from the outset.

No shot offered!

Scott Boland strikes with his tenth delivery 🔥 #WTCFinalpic.twitter.com/apgOF9FjyD

— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) June 8, 2023

Pat Cummins, despite blowing what should have been the lbw dismissal of Ajinkya Rahane by overstepping on day two, is clearly Australia’s No. 1 seed paceman. Moreover he’s captain, and declared in the lead-up to this match that he was hopeful of playing all six Tests on this tour.

Since his return to Test cricket in 2017, Cummins has been durable. If he plays all five Ashes Tests, and admittedly it is still a big if, that likely leaves only 10 slots (two other positions across five matches) for the other four frontline quicks in Australia’s squad, barring an injury to Nathan Lyon or Cameron Green.

How Australia shares the load from there will be fascinating. Thursday afternoon’s action at The Oval was illuminating but arguably left more questions than answers about the ideal makeup of the Australian attack.

Mitchell Starc is no miser - but he is a true strike weapon. Picture: Getty Images

Mitchell Starc, shunned for most of the 2019 series, was unsurprisingly the most expensive of the quicks and was replaced by Boland after just two overs. Yet for all Boland’s relentless consistency, he will struggle to deliver the type of knockout riser that left Virat Kohli hopelessly stranded on the back foot to be snaffled by Steve Smith at second slip.

Boland, of whom it had been said in recent weeks had been born to bowl in England, finally did so in a competitive red-ball match at the age of 34. He had a wicket before he’d even conceded a run, bowling Shubman Gill with subtle seam movement, and with his unerring accuracy was Australia’s most frugal bowler.

Then there is Hazlewood, whose involvement ceased with that lunchtime trot. He has 36 Test wickets in the UK at less than 24. But he’s also played just four Tests in 28 months due to a mix of injury and pitch conditions. It leaves at least a hint of trepidation about whether he can make it through the series.

Australia's captain Pat Cummins is keen to play every Ashes Test. Picture: AFP

That is before even considering Neser, who will probably need a couple of fellow quicks to go down if he is to break through for a maiden away Test.

In one respect the selectors are spoiled for choice. In another they are burdened by having too many good options.

“I know from having faced Scotty in the nets very recently, he’s bowling very nicely,” Smith said after play on day two when asked about the pecking order.

“I think the angles he provides, his ability to hit the stumps from slightly shorter than some of our others is a big plus, something that I think Neser can do as well. Shorter guys who are a bit skiddier so if there’s any seam movement, it gives the ball the chance to move and still hit the stumps if that makes sense.”

All five have bowling averages in the teens or 20s across this WTC cycle, as for that matter do Lyon, Green, spin understudy Todd Murphy and part-timers Smith and Travis Head.

And the five Indian wickets to fall on Thursday were shared across the five Australian bowlers used. That is the mark of an even team.

It is this collective excellence that left Australia in the box seat to become world champions in the game’s premier format.